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Christie Stays Mum on 2012 Run at N.J. National Guard Event

Oct 2, 2011 4:56 pm ET

With fervor growing about “will he or won’t he,” a larger than normal local and national press corps watched eagerly as Gov. Chris Christie presided over an annual awards ceremony for National Guard at a training center on the New Jersey shore.

In anticipation, guard members assigned to media duty flagged reporters as they entered the base, escorted them to a makeshift media parking lot and corralled them in a roped-off-area 50-feet from where the governor watched and addressed troops. Guards could be overheard telling each other to make sure the press are blocked from pursuing the governor when he leaves.

The closest any talk of Christie pursuing the Republican nomination for president came as he left the stage after the one-hour ceremony.

Reporters shouted out questions: “Any decisions about running for president?” “Anything?” “Are you running” “Are you gonna run?” “Do you need a hearing aid?” Mr. Christie did not acknowledge them, and kept moving down the stairs past a line of guardsmen and out of town.